Expert Rating

9/10

Showy supercar is for the select few possessing front and finance.

I now know what a rock star feels like. The paparazzi were ready every time I ventured out in the Lamborghini Huracan Spyder; speeding up, slowing down and changing lanes to photograph the show-off supercar from every angle.

And there are a lot of angles. Beyond the edgy styling and garish green paintwork there's reason to stare … the design, inside and out, is all about planes and six-sided figures.

The V10 is naturally aspirated so it rewards — physically and acoustically — playing around the top half of the tachometer, which winds out to 8500rpm.

The physics are seriously quick at 3.4 seconds from rest to 100km/h and the Spyder's carbon-ceramic brake discs bleed the pace off. The acoustics are outrageous thanks to a tiny rear window that can be lowered with the top up or down to enhance the Raging Bull's bellow.

Though there's not a huge amount of interior room, access is achieved more elegantly than in some supercars.

Inside the sumptuous — and well-finished — cabin is a mix of bespoke Lamborghini and Audi switchgear. The Audi stuff is kept low and largely out of sight, enabling the toggle-style switches to dominate the dash.

The seats are superb and, though there's not a huge amount of interior room, access is achieved more elegantly than in some supercars.

On the road

This Spyder doesn't so much creep up alongside you as drumroll its way into your presence. It is pure theatrics, from the look-this-way styling to the guttural growl from the tailpipes, even at idle.

The fabric roof stows and raises in 18 seconds (at up to 50km/h, for those with no respect for wind gusts).

The Spyder can be driven reasonably sedately at city speeds, providing the "anima" button at the base of the steering wheel is in the strada (road) setting and you've remembered to engage the toggle switch that lifts the nose by 40mm.

In that setting, the throttle needs more pressure to engage savage acceleration and has auto shifting into top gear from as low as 60km/h, damping the exhaust note to a level that doesn't bounce off shop fronts or cause them to vibrate.

Switch to Corsa (race) and this is a bull that reacts accordingly.

Even with the front end raised care is required over speed humps and on driveway splays. The nose automatically lowers at 70km/h and from then on the chin is the thickness of a decent woollen carpet away from the road. Looks awesome but requires caution on some of our grubbier sections of tarmac.

Find the right stretch of tarmac, engage the Sport setting to tighten up the transmission, engine response and stability control and the Huracan Spyder is almost as swift and just as precise as its coupe counterpart.

The ride jars with the increased pace but the front wheels keep tracking where they're pointed and corner-exit acceleration is as exhilarating is you'd expect — and demand — from a $471,000 supercar.

Switch to Corsa (race) and this is a bull that reacts accordingly. It charges towards the limiter and it takes some quick work of the oversized paddle-shifters to avoid the soft cut-out in the first couple of cogs.

Lamborghini adds 120kg in the form of the soft-top and associated chassis reinforcement, pushing the 0-100km/h time out to 3.4 seconds.

Throw in a set of brakes that belong on a track and a composite chassis that contributes to a dry weight to 1542kg and you've got all the components for a seriously quick car, with the added party trick of letting the sunshine in.

The slick styling also means the baby supercar is good for 324km/h top speed with the top up or down.

Verdict

Only a select few Australians will have the front and finances to join the Huracan Spyder set.

They will experience Lamborghini at its brashest and should love the experience.

When it comes to this car, above all other convertibles that have been through the CarsGuide garage, shrinking violets need not apply.

What's new

Price - The privilege of going top up or down attracts a $42,800 premium over the equivalent Huracan coupe. At $470,800 the Spyder is still significantly cheaper than its main rival, Ferrari's 488 Spyder at $526,888

Technology - The high-definition "digital cockpit" pioneered by Audi finds its way behind the steering wheel, albeit with more flamboyant Lambo-inspired display choices than have been seen to date.

Performance - Quick enough to get you booked or have the car impounded before it is out of second gear. From rest to 200km/h takes 10.2 secs.

Driving - Ferociously quick and loud, the Lambo's limits can't be explored on Australian roads, even the die-straight derestricted Northern Territory stretches. All-wheel drive endows serious grip and that tenacity translates into a decent run-off area if you do push past the limits.

Design - As much mobile art as automobile, the Spyder takes the same approach to angles as Ferrari does with curves. Hexagons are the obvious big influence and extend down to such details as the six-sided air vents.

Would you prefer the Spyder or the hardtop version? Tell us what you think in the comments below.